enorbet said:I recently watched what may come to be an important milestone in Sci Fi. Don't get excited yet since it is by no means a "pulse-pounder". It is the 2017 film, The Beyond .
I liked this movie rather a lot while at the same time understanding it's low rating and probably low appeal as far as numbers are concerned. It's not visceral. It's intellectual. I've loved Sci Fi since I was a child but over time I came to realize that much of it is just Cowboys and Indians in Space and while it often pays homage to Science and Technology it is most often rather fearful of them, which is probably a reflection of how the unscientific, the vast majority of the population, view Science and Technology. It may well play a part in the current suspicion, distrust and skepticism that gives us Flat Earthers and Moon Landing Denial, etc etc etc.
Some of the "Science" in The Beyond is.. well... silly but it's not a deal breaker to the main thrust of the concept and some of those can keep your thoughts and imagination highly stimulated especially if you're at all intrigued by Kurzweil's "singularity".
Some of the plot mechanics are silly too unless you are able to suspend disbelief when presented with many so-called Sci Fi plots that actually imagine the current state of humanity has a snowball's chance in Hell of defending against a civilization that can travel interstellar distances let alone routinely command energies equivalent to orders of magnitude greater than our Sun over it's entire lifetime, but then quite a few movies not only seem to imagine this possible and reasonable but hold it up to be somehow heroic. Because of this fact, I can forgive The Beyond, especially in the service of the Big Picture that finally get's presented with a positive message and displays trust in Science and Technology while doing it.
Since fearful, suspicious Sci Fi and Technology has also led to the TLDR generation, here's the skinny. If you loved "Aliens" AND hated "Star Trek: The Next Generation" or even preferred "Star Wars" to "Star Trek"this probably isn't your "cuppa". If you liked "Contact" it very well might be. It's not quite as well done as the recent "Arrival" (not the Charlie Sheen movie) but it is broader and equally high minded with a far greater reach. It could keep you thinking about anyone of a number of points for a very long time.
The way it addresses human-technology singularity is extremely thought provoking and quite possibly rather prescient.
This is the purview of speculative fiction - of which science fiction is a subset.new6ton said:Your suggestion "The Beyond" looks cool. I acquired it and will watch it tonight.
More like it please. Movies that can make you think of the future and possible technological marvels especially regarding the brain and its extensions.
Motorcycle racer Lyle Swann (Fred Ward) is cruising through the Mexican desert when he accidentally stumbles into a time-travel experiment and finds himself transported back to the Old West of the 1870s. There he encounters an attractive local woman (Belinda Bauer) and a gang of criminals led by Porter Reese (Peter Coyote). Lyle's motorized bike is impressive in the past -- until it runs out of gas. Now Lyle must rely on his wits to take care of business and return to his own time.
Brad Bird (writer) said:You have two pets
One is Darkness and Doom
The other is Brightness and Hope
Which one survives and flourishes?
FWIW it seemed to me that the book series ran out of ideas and steamenorbet said:On a lesser note I binge watched the new season of The Expanse and while the cast and production are as compelling as ever, I found it mildly disappointing but that is probably due to the "tough act to follow" syndrome. Not every writing team or story can conclude a brilliant story as perfectly as The Sopranos or Six Feet Under. It's still worth watching and does retain some possibility of greater things to follow, but for me, this season was a bit of a lull. Hopefully it's just the "eye of the hurricane".